The Reader: Rising child poverty should be priority of our politicians

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Impact: child poverty can have terrible consequences, like homelessness
NurPhoto via Getty Images
12 December 2018
WEST END FINAL

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It is disheartening to see child poverty still existing in the UK in spite of us being the fifth richest country in the world.

This situation is unjustifiable and needs to be urgently resolved for the sake of future generations. It is more important for the Government to address this now rather than becoming bogged down in the imbroglio of Brexit, which is getting priority over other vital national matters.

According to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s annual state of the nation report, a fifth of the population are in poverty. Of these, more than half are working-age adults, 4.1 million are children and 1.9 million are pensioners

The foundation’s chief executive Campbell Robb said recently: “We are seeing a rising tide of child poverty as more parents are unable to make ends meet, despite working. This is unacceptable. It means more families are trapped in impossible situations, struggling to pay the bills, put food on the table and dealing with the terrible stresses poverty places on family life.” Poverty is depriving parents of the chance to afford even a week’s holiday for their children.

It also adversely affects a young person’s education, health and quality of life.

It is time the Government took this matter seriously by bringing in the right policies so that every child can have the opportunity to do well in life and we can have a stronger economy, and a healthier and fairer society.
Baldev Sharma

EDITOR'S REPLY

Dear Baldev

It’s deeply regrettable, of course, that any child is brought up in poverty, not least because of the negative impact that it frequently has on their long-term prospects — although it’s worth remembering that the statistics are usually based on how people fare in comparison with median salaries, rather than on their absolute income.

That means the number living in poverty depends partly on the gap between the earnings of rich and poor — which is an issue in itself — and not necessarily on the actual amount they have to spend each month. Nonetheless, it’s clear that life is a struggle for many people in this city.

One reason is high housing costs. This needs to be addressed by the provision of more genuinely affordable social and low-cost housing.

Another answer must be to focus on education and on equipping more children with the skills that they need to rise beyond the low-paid jobs in which too many are currently stuck. The benefits system must work better too, particularly for those who are in jobs.

Martin Bentham, Home Affairs Editor

Mayor was honest about Crossrail

YOUR claim yesterday that London Mayor Sadiq Khan knew “earlier than he let on” about the Crossrail delay is deeply inaccurate and misleading [“Welcome to Lossrail: TfL bosses miss out on £600million”, December 11]. Furthermore, your suggestion that documents published this week by Transport for London verify the claims of former Crossrail chairman Terry Morgan is wrong.

The Mayor has said he was briefed in July of “rising schedule pressures” and that he was advised that the opening date was at “high risk”.

It was only at the end of August that Crossrail notified him — and the Department for Transport — of the new “autumn 2019” opening date.

As the documents published this week show, Crossrail continued to forecast a December 2018 opening during the early weeks of August.

This is why it was so important that the Mayor asked TfL to commission an independent review of the project’s governance.
Heidi Alexander
Deputy Mayor for Transport

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